It's a me, a third class author who likes to go Meta sometimes.
Once I did it to criticize the (still) not ending barrage of "No Such Luck" Fanfictions. Now I have a new target, the custom to make an exploitative little jerk named Chandler into a monster in fanworks for some reason.
I devote this story to Exotos135, the one author who stood against the trend to make Chandler a bad guy and who partially inspired me to write this.
The lyrics used in this song are from the band "The Megas" (I devote the story to them as well) from their song "The Haystack Principle" (which also inspired me to write this) which I slightly rewrote so it would fit this story. Hear the song before reading this fanfic if you like.
ultrablud2 was once again my proof-reader and he helped me come up with the title. I thank him a lot for both.
I'm not a bad guy
by
Hatoralo
Chandler was sitting alone in his home, reading through some papers he had printed out.
He had been reading those papers for a while now, since last weekend when he found them, the data documents of them to be precise.
He was disgusted.
Bad guy, bully, villain, aggregator, scoundrel, knave, miscreant, blackguard, reprobate.
He wasn't called most of them, but the stories on those papers made him look like he was one of them.
This is not my home
It's where I'm locked away
It's in their interpretation
It's not my representation
This is not who I am
Who was he?
He was Chandler, one of the most popular children in school because of his sewage plant parties. He had been surprised to learn people wanted to be at a sewage plant, except Lana, who he had seen visiting the plant regularly to watch and talk with the workers there.
He had friends, money, and popularity and knew how to get stuff for free, but he was also willing to pay people accordingly. And yet, there he was, reading stories that painted him as an absolute asshole instead of the moderate one he was.
You'll never see me
Behind this bully's face
These aren't my deeds
These writings take their place
Was this all part of the plan?
Since he had started reading those stories about him, he realized the vices he had. His attitude towards others, one of superiority because he believed in his own hype around himself. The arrogance, because of his popularity he bathed himself in while walking around as if he knew everything and could do nothing wrong.
Would you believe this isn't me?
That what you get isn't what you see?
Realizing those inadequacies of his persona, he felt like his heart was bursting, hurting like never before. Despite that, there was not only mourning and self-loathing.
There was anger as well.
He read the stories. One author had made him bully the six-year old Lana, the sister of Lincoln Loud, after bullying him excessively for days beforehand. He physically attacked a six-year-old girl. Why? Why would he do that? He didn't think he would like it and he knew it could easily be social suicide to beat up a little kid.
He read other stories in which he was an antagonist for the flimsiest of reasons, including a reasoning that he was fierce at Lincoln because he never showed up at his party. He never even noticed that Lincoln hadn't been at the plant along with his spectacled friend.
He called him Larry, why would he give him any more attention?
I'm not a bad guy
I'm just written that way
No matter what I try
I can't help and stop them adapting me
And I can't see a way out this time.
He walked in circles in his room, growling, his anger about these writings making him think about himself and if he was able to be better at all. Everywhere he was a villain, an easy bully to antagonize Lincoln or to even trick him into doing something very stupid.
In another story, he and some older kids convinced Lincoln to install a camera in his oldest sister's bedroom to film her while she got herself changed. He was too young to understand the appeal of the naked form of a person, despite that he knew that people older than him loved to watch the bare form of a human body.
He really didn't understand why somebody would do that, he found naked women easily enough on the internet.
Angry and confused, he turned on his radio on his nightstand and started to dance to the tune that was playing right now. He tried to dance his negative thoughts, his sorrow and the bile from those stories away.
He almost lost himself in a dance of fury and overthinking as he suddenly stopped.
Wait, get to the point
The red-haired student then looked for a story that presented him in a good way. He knew what fanfictions were, he liked Avatar: The Last Airbender, he had seen all the episodes of the first and second series, he had even read the comics.
That had led him to looking up Fanarts and Fanfics of that show and he discovered how certain villains were adored by the fan base despite their horrible deeds.
They had virtues, could even be nice to certain degrees but they were still often horrible people.
He wondered why nobody had made such stories about him… Was he lacking so much in charisma to these people, to these authors who wrote the stories?
He noticed that some other people also received a lot of hate. There was a teenager named Carol Pingrey who in some fanfics was an absolute asshole and other stories about his classmate Christina. He knew that Christina was not a bad person, but he knew about the video of Lincoln kissing photos of her on that scary bust of that vampire guy.
He understood why Christina would be upset, but was it enough reason to take lethal revenge against the family?
It's hard to blame them
I even scare myself
Written to cross seems to
Be detrimental to my health
I guess I should have known
He didn't understand these people. Chandler couldn't wrap his head around those writers who were apologists but also willing to condemn certain other characters for the most baffling of reasons.
He had also read stories about two of Lincoln's sisters, Luan and Lynn, also often turned into bad guys, and if Luan's YouTube prank videos posted around April 1st were real, he understood why.
That girl was crazy, so much more dangerous than he ever could be. Why her family didn't send her to a psychiatric ward was a mystery to him.
And yet, she got redemption in such stories, even Lynn got redemption, but who was interested in him, the local "bully" Chandler, even though Ronnie Ann had tortured him more than he ever did. She had done many bad things to him, including pulling down his pants in front of everyone, filling his locker with trash and punching him in the face.
And yet, while Ronnie got attacked in those Fanfics too, she often got redemption.
But not him.
He's on his way to me
I hear him coming close
I guess it's his job
When pushing comes to shove
At least I won't be alone
Lincoln, or somebody else, would beat him up in such stories, real badly. A karmic punishment for him, for all the bullying he did to Lincoln and/or other people. Though, it was unrealistic to believe that a bullied Loud would be bullied for long. This family stuck together, and if one of them was bullied, the other siblings would take care of the bully.
He had seen the poor fool who bullied Lucy for a few days, well not him exactly, but pictures of him on Visagebook. He was found in a ditch, wrapped in toilet paper.
Still alive but full of bruises.
Would you believe this isn't me?
That what you get isn't what you see?
Why should he be so stupid as to make the same fatal mistake? He was surprised the Louds never ganged on Ronnie Anne, but after learning that his sisters thought that a girl bullying a boy means that she loves him, he reconsidered his opinion of them.
They had flaws themselves, and that outdated idea was one of them. Luckily, they get called out on that as well in many stores.
There was hardly any sympathy for him, only one noticeable author had decided to stand against the trend so far.
Why was I attacked more than an archaic idea of romance and love?
I'm not a bad guy
I'm just written that way
No matter what I try
I can't help and stop them adapting me
And I can't see a way out this time
He also knew about Hank & Hawk, two overgrown elementary school football players who stole candy from little children, and Flip, a greedy business man who was even willing to let little children freeze to death just to get more money.
But he was supposed to be worse than him? What he did in that one episode was not even close to the stuff those three did.
It was so unfair… Why him and not those who deserved to be portrayed as the bad guys? Chandler thought how he would get his revenge on those stupid authors, how he…
Deep down the sewers, ten miles down
A boy stands below the Loud House he will destroy...
Chandler was fantasizing about his revenge. It would be so easy to flood their house, destroying it*. Just changing a few pipes, manipulating a handle here and there and…
Stop
He shook his head. No, he couldn't do this. What were this people doing to him? Were they adapting him again, or was all that negative representation getting to the redhead?
He just wanted it to stop, he just wanted them to stop writing stories about him where he becomes a flanderized jerk of a brutal bully instead of the regular jerk he was. Carol Pingrey had been made into a good gal, she never even was bad to begin with, but ONE episode with him as an exploitative asshole, and he was condemned as a far worse person.
How can I retract these lies?
(Those are your deeds
You can't take back the damage you devise)
He felt lucky that nobody in his personal live knew about this stories. He knew they weren't true and all the people he knew would probably believe the same. But what if those stories would be able to warp their view of him? What if they started to believe what he really was able to do those things?
How can I remove this farce?
(That is your guise
You can't remove the abhorrence you force)
Having a bad reputation amongst people who you don't interact with is not so bad, but amongst your closest acquaintances, friends and family? That would be a huge catastrophe. The fear was incredible. Was he the only one who knew about those stories, those Fanfictions, or did other people know about them?
The damage… The thought… He feared his own family could start to hate him. Fear him. Exile him!
His heart was gripped by hate and was filled with more and more of it by the second.
How could these people do this?
How can I avoid their hatred that fills my eyes?
(You can't shut down where your path lies)
They are so ignorant. They have the freedom to do anything with them, but they made the same story again and again. Why can't they try to handle stuff differently?
When can you stop making me bad?
(That is who you are)
[That is who you are]
If that's who you think I am
Then I'll fight your flimflam!
He had enough, he would show them who he was, he wouldn't sit there and be a passive victim. He would show them who he was.
Chandler equipped himself with what he needed and made sure it was there before leaving his house.
His destination: The Casa de Loud.
He would end this once and for all.
He had hidden what he needed in his pockets, with it, he would end all the complains, with it, he would deal with the Louds once and for all.
I'm not a bad guy
I'm just written that way
No matter what I try
I can't help and stop them adapting me
And now I see a way out this time
It would be over after today.
Lincoln was playing in the front yard with Lana, using toy construction site vehicles as Chandler approached the house. In his pocket, the instrument that would end the hate for him.
Lincoln looked up, seeing him coming closer, but looked away after a second.
He didn't even recognize him right now. He had forgotten him, it seems, but the authors did not. Time to change that.
With a steady pace, he walked up to Lincoln who looked up again, this time keeping his attention on the redhead. Lincoln's eyelids rose up as he recognized the kid.
"Chandler? Can I help you?"
Chandler didn't say anything, instead, he drew something out of his pocket and held it directly in front of Lincoln's face.
"Take this!"
He held something against Lincoln's head. Lincoln looked at the item in Chandler's hands with surprise.
It was a stack of bills, bound by a currency strap.
"Cool!" was Lana's happy expression at the sight of the money. "Chandler wants to give you some money." Then she got silent for a moment before looking suspiciously at him. "Wait, this smells like a Lola thing. What do you want him to do for this money?"
"No, I just want to give him money," Chandler explained. "No catch."
"Oh, sorry," apologized Lana. "Lola once tricked me into showing up at one of her tea parties with her plushies which then evolved into a mafia war." Lana shook her head in distress. "It was scary how good Lola could do the voice of a plushy that was being tortured."
Chandler and Lincoln, slightly disturbed by this revelation, turned to each other again.
"I want to pay my dues," told Chandler the white-haired boy in an apologizing tone, his face expressing remorse. "I exploited you and your older sister's position at Gus' Games and Grub to get freebies. That was wrong of me, and I want to make it up to you."
Lincoln, looking surprised, stood up and took the money. There was no reason to refuse it. He would tell Lori about it. He was not sure if she should get all of it or if they should share it, but he wouldn't keep it a secret from her, even if Lana hadn't been here.
"Thank you, Chandler," thanked the white haired boy the red haired boy. "You are not as egoistical as I originally thought."
"Some… people showed me how much of a jerkass I had been," explained Chandler awkwardly. "I thought I should change my ways before I become the monster they say I am."
"What a bunch of losers," Lincoln commented, sounding angry. "That is the worst kind of criticism, sounds like bullying to me." Lincoln smiled warmly at the redhead. "Listen, if they don't stop it, my sisters and I can talk with them."
"And if they don't realize that their way of criticizing you is wrong, we will continue to bother them," offered Lana. "We can talk them into oblivion. Our family name is Loud for a reason."
Lana's confident smirk brought hope to Chandler's heart. The feeling that they cared for him despite his deeds just because he showed remorse blew away the darkness brought onto him by those stories. "Thank you Lana, you are a good girl. I didn't think I would gain your favor."
"Don't mention it," Lana stated casually. "Everyone deserves a second chance if they are seriously sorry for what they did."
This was going better than Chandler had ever dare to dream. He didn't realize it before, but now he understood that he had been subconsciously thinking that the Louds would have been as judgmental as the authors.
"I have to go then," Chandler explained a little awkwardly, not completely knowing what to do else. "I have-"
"Please stay."
Chandler looked up in surprise. "Lincoln?"
"No reason to go, you can hang out with me and Lana if you want," offered Lincoln. "It sounds like you could need some friends right now."
Chandler was tempted to accept the offer, which he did. Maybe he wanted to stick it to the authors, maybe he really wanted to have him as a friend, maybe a little bit of both, but in any case, he felt like it was the right thing to do.
"Sure, let's play."
After playing with Lana and Lincoln, they said goodbye to each other. Chandler had totally forgotten why he had been even here. His day had been too good now.
There was nothing that could rain in his parade.
"Nice to see you playing so nice with my siblings."
Chandler shrieked in surprise and made a jump in the air. He turned around and found himself standing before Lori, second-in-command of the Loud Clan.
"Oh, hello Miss Lori Loud," he greeted her nervously and politely. He knew that his machinations almost ruined an important romantic date of hers. She probably knew about that. He had not thought about her in all of this. Lincoln had paid his dues to her, so she was okay with him.
But what about Chandler? Had she forgiven the redhead?
"Don't look so panicked, I don't plan to put you over my knee," she explained with a warm smile. "In fact, I want to congratulate you. I wouldn't have thought you could change that way. I guess seeing how the authors treat you made you reconsider."
"Well, yes they opened my eyes, even if they-" Chandler froze. "How do you-?"
"Heard your song," Lori explained plainly. "Well, the song from others with changed lyrics. Also, I heard your thoughts about it." Lori noticed Chandler's surprised gaze. "Yes, I can also view the fourth wall. Most Louds can do it to a degree. Even though seeing what was going on with you was a total coincidence. Don't ask me how I did it, it just happened."
"Listen… I… I am sorry, really sorry for what happened," Chandler got back to the point. "I was an egotistical ignorant little jerk and I didn't want those authors having the last words in regards to me. That isn't the best motivation… I fear my wish to stick it to them is greater than my actual wish to improve myself."
Lori didn't agree. "I think your deeds made it clear that you want to be a good guy. Otherwise, you would have only complained and not acted. But act you did, and what you did convinced me you are serious about your goal to improve yourself."
Chandler, blushing a little, a little proud and slightly bashed about himself, avoided Lori's gaze. He didn't know he would react that way to praise, which surprised him.
"I… Thank you Miss Lori Loud," was the only thing he got out of his esophagus, too nervous to say anything else. "Thank you a lot."
"I am only seventeen, no need to address me as a Miss, but it is appreciated," Lori informed the young boy. "If you want to visit us again, you are welcome."
"Despite how much the authors presented me as an enemy?"
"I rather try to ignore them," told Lori the boy. "I like the fanarts more except-"
"Don't mention it, I saw some of them," remembered Chandler with a shudder. He expected a lot but most of the romantic pictures were just plain wrong. "Please, I don't want to think about it."
"Me neither," agreed Lori, her voice suddenly going very cold. "Go home now, we'll talk more about those… happy works of our fans another time."
Chandler said his goodbyes and got on his way home. Everything played out better than he had ever hoped. He made peace with Lincoln, Lana liked him and even Lori was friendly to the freckled kid.
Still, there was something else he could do now. A secret plan he had never thought he could even try to execute in any way, but now he had a chance with the Loud Clan in his good graces.
A mischievous smirk ran across his face.
Up in a tree, Chandler was watching the two making out.
He observed how the African-American boy put his lips on the sportswoman's cheek again and again, while the young boy was blushing.
Lynn and Clyde were now a couple, also known as "Clynn", and they made out every day.
They didn't talk over their smartphones all the time, Lynn didn't want to become another Lori so she ran over to his house every time she wanted to talk.
She loved the exercise and she loved Clyde even more.
Chandler grinned.
He hadn't manipulated the two into falling in love with each other, he hadn't used love potions, magic, complicated mind-control technology, voodoo or anything else. He just set the stage for some lucky encounters, which led the two to become a romantic couple.
It was a relief for everyone because Clyde overcame his unhealthy crush on Lori and now has a healthy relationship with Lynn.
He did something good again and, he knew a few of the authors and drawing artists wouldn't be so happy about more "Clynn".
The thought of that made him smile.
He looked over to the happy couple for a last time before jumping down from the tree and going on his way to his sewer-exploration-playdate with Lana.
He really liked the little girl and she liked him.
Another Shout-Out to Exotos135, one of the few Loud House Fanfiction-Authors who prefers to make Chandler into a good guy instead of the asshole bully he becomes in most other Fanfics.
Also ONE big Shout-Out to "The Megas" who make songs REAL songs out of the Mega Man video game music, not just another remix, real songs, which tell a story and give many Mega Man Characters characterization, motivation and pathos while sounding really good.
"The Haystack Principle" is probably one of my favorite songs from them.
I recommend them to everyone who loves the Mega Man Franchise, go and listen to their music on their official YouTube Channel as soon as possible.
And yes, I am a really big fan of "The Megas", surprising I know, I was so subtle about it.
Yes, I know about Chandler attacking Lana in "What is a Person worth" that is the reason I made the two friends in this tale and why I referenced it as an example.
I also referenced the story "Brotherhood" in which Chandler and some other kids manipulated Lincoln into getting naked recordings of Lori.
This trend to make this rather harmless Chandler guy a bad guy is strange enough but it seldom plays into his only actual villainous trait of manipulation, instead he is often made into a bully which doesn't reflect his actual behavior in the canon of the show. Nobody is creative with him which is even worse in a way.
Don't forget to fav and follow if you like this and don't forget to comment.
Say me what you guys liked and what not, only that way I can improve.
With all that said I wish you a good day and a good time.
Until next time!